Vietnamese International Film Festival returns

A wedding scene from the movie "Scandal," directed by Victor Vu. The film will make its U.S. premiere April 5 during the sixth Vietnamese International Film Festival. COURTESY OF [CAFETRAM] AND VIFF

The Vietnamese International Film Festival (ViFF) announced on Friday the lineup for its sixth biennial gathering, April 4-7 and April 11-14.

The wrestling action/drama "Beyond the Mat," directed by Van M. Pham, will open the film fest at 6 p.m. April 4 at Edwards University Town Center 6 in Irvine. An opening gala reception will follow at Steelhead Brewing Company, also located in Irvine's University Center shopping district.

For the first time, Edwards University will continue to screen ViFF films during its opening weekend. The festival will also take place at the Bowers Museum in Santa Ana, UC Irvine and UCLA.

The closing film will be "War Witch," an award-winning drama directed by Kim Nguyen. "War Witch" was nominated for an Academy Award for best foreign language film at the 2013 Oscars. It will screen at 7:30 p.m. April 14 in room HIB 100 at UC Irvine, followed by a closing night gala at UCI's Humanities Gateway.

In all, ViFF will present 69 films, including 18 features, a record for the 10-year-old festival. ViFF is co-presented by Vietnamese American Arts & Letters Association (VAALA) and Vietnamese Language & Culture (VNLC).

"We have such a strong lineup, and this will be a reunion of a lot of filmmakers who presented their first features at the first ViFF. They're coming back with their most recent work," said Ysa Le, co-director of the film fest along with John Pham, who serves as co-director of VNLC, a student-run organization based at UCLA.

"Film, more than any other art form, can reach people, open dialogues, open communication channels," said Le, who's also executive director of VAALA. "People from different generations can come together and see a film. It's really a win-win-win situation for the artists, audiences and the festival organizers."

Other ViFF highlights include the U.S. premiere of "Scandal," a Vietnamese-language film by onetime Fountain Valley resident Victor Vu at 7 p.m. April 5 at Edwards University; a screening of "Norwegian Wood" and Inspiration Award presentation to director Tran Anh Hung ("The Scent of Green Papaya") at 6 p.m. April 6 at Edwards University; and the U.S. premiere of "House in the Alley," directed by Le Van Kiet, at 7:30 p.m. April 13 at UC Irvine.

The Bowers Museum will host a senior citizens day on April 5, with free admission to all attendees 60 and older with ID; and the Bowers will have a High School Day on April 12, with free admission to all high school students with ID. The High School Day will conclude with a "Common Ground" music and poetry open-mike event.

Thursday, April 11 will be UCLA Day, with free admission to all attendees.

"Flashback/Flashforward" is the theme of this year's ViFF. Filmmakers from all over the world are expected to attend, including Vietnam, the United States, Australia, Cambodia, Canada, the Czech Republic, France, Germany, Poland, Singapore and Switzerland.

ViFF was established in October 2003 to showcase films by Vietnamese and Vietnamese diaspora filmmakers.

Tickets are $10 for general screenings, $8 for students with ID, $50 for the opening film and gala ($20 for film only), and $20 for the closing film and gala ($10 each). Tickets will go on sale March 25 at Tu-Quynh Book Store, 714-531-4284, Bolsa Tickets, 714-418-2499 and VietFilmFest.com.

A wedding scene from the movie "Scandal," directed by Victor Vu. The film will make its U.S. premiere April 5 during the sixth Vietnamese International Film Festival. COURTESY OF [CAFETRAM] AND VIFF
John Wynn plays Aaron Miller in "Beyond the Mat," which is opening the sixth biennial Vietnamese International Film Festival on April 4. The film, directed by Van M. Pham, will screen at 7:30 p.m. at Edwards University Town Center 6 in Irvine. COURTESY OF VIFF
"Norwegian Wood," a Japanese-language film directed by Tran Anh Hung. The Vietnamese International Film Festival will screen the movie at 7:30 p.m. April 6, preceded by an Inspiration Award presentation to the director at 6 p.m. at Edwards University Town Center 6. COURTESY OF VIFF
The poster image for "Beyond the Mat," a film starring John Wynn and directed by Van M. Pham. The movie will open the 2013 Vietnamese International Film Festival on April 4 at Edwards University Town Center 6 in Irvine. COURTESY OF VIFF
A scene from "War Witch," a film directed by Kim Nguyen. The movie will close the 2013 Vietnamese International Film Festival on April 14 at UC Irvine. COURTESY OF VIFF
A scene from "In the Name of Love," a film directed by Luu Huynh. The 2012 film will screen at 4 p.m. April 6 at Edwards University town Center 6 in Irvine, part of the sixth Vietnamese International Film Festival. COURTESY OF VIFF
The official poster for the 2013 Vietnamese International Film Festival, taking place April 4-7 and April 11-14 in Orange County and UCLA. COURTESY OF VIFF
Maya plays Tra My in "Scandal," which makes its U.S. premiere April 5 during the sixth biennial Vietnamese International Film Festival. The film, directed by Victor Vu, will screen at 7 p.m. at Edwards University Town Center 6 in Irvine. COURTESY OF [CAFETRAM] AND VIFF
Aaron Miller, played by John Wynn, right, kisses Linh Tran, played by Teresa Michelle Lee, in ""Beyond the Mat," which opens the sixth biennial Vietnamese International Film Festival on April 4. The film, directed by Van M. Pham, will screen at 7:30 p.m. at Edwards University Town Center 6 in Irvine. COURTESY OF VIFF
A scene from "Scandal," which will make its U.S. premiere on April 5 at Edwards University Town Center 6 during the sixth Vietnamese International Film Festival. COURTESY OF [CAFETRAM] AND VIFF

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